by Pope Francis
Reviewed by Eileen Quinn Knight, Ph.D.
Love is the essence of God’s presence in our lives. Sourcing examples from the Old and New Testaments as well as from his personal experience of love for God and others. Pope Francis teaches us that God exists in our lives as steadfast, endless love. When love is cultivated in our own hearts, it will bear the fruit of all other virtues. On Love connects us to Pope Francis’s abiding belief that we were created to be God’s instruments of love in the world. “It is precisely God’s love that gives meaning to our small daily tasks and helps us face great trials. This is the true treasure of humankind: going forward in life with love, a love that the Lord has sown in our hearts. The Lord’s love is our true treasure.
This is an example of one of his reflections: “In our fragmented lives, the Lord comes to meet us with a loving “fragility” in the Eucharist. The Eucharist is the memorial of God’s love, there, “[Christ] sufferings are remembered” and we recall God’s love for us, which gives us strength and support on our journey. This is why the Eucharistic commemoration does us so much good: it is not an abstract, cold and superficial memory but a living remembrance that comforts us with God’s love. A memory that is both recollection and instruction. The Eucharist gives us the encouragement that even on the roughest road, we are not alone. The Lord does not forget us. Whenever we turn to Him, he restores us with his love.”
The reflections provide us with many moments of reflection as we continue to build our relationship with the Lord.